Unit 50: Condition Monitoring and Fault

Diagnosis
On successful completion of this unit a learner will:
1. Understand the concepts of condition monitoring
2. Understand the nature and use of condition monitoring
techniques
3. Be able to locate faults in engineering systems
4. Be able to analyse the cause and effect of faults in engineering
systems

Intended Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit a learner will:
1. Understand the concepts of condition monitoring
2. Understand the nature and use of condition monitoring
techniques
3. Be able to locate faults in engineering systems
4. Be able to analyse the cause and effect of faults in engineering
systems

Unit Content
1. Understand the concepts of condition monitoring
Conditio
2. Understand the nature and use of condition monitoring techniques
n
Monitor
3. Be able to locate faults in engineering systems
ing
Fault
4. Be able to analyse the cause and effect of faults in engineering
Diagno
sis
systems

Unit Content
1. Understand the concepts of condition monitoring
Failure and breakdown: degradation due to corrosion, cracking,
fouling, wear, ageing, maloperation, environmental effects, operational
and maintenance considerations; statistical analysis of failure rates on
plant and equipment
Monitoring: arrangements and measured parameters (online and
offline monitoring, fixed and portable monitoring equipment,
continuous and semi-continuous data recording, stress analysis)
Data analysis: data analysis eg computerised systems, data
acquisition techniques, use of generic computer software (such as
spreadsheets, databases), fault analysis/diagnosis, plant down time
analysis, data storage techniques, high-speed data capture, trend
analysis, expert systems, condition monitoring integrated within
normal plant and machinery control and data acquisition systems

Unit Content
2. Understand the nature and use of condition monitoring techniques
Vibration: broad band defect detection; frequency spectrum analysis;
shock pulse method; high-frequency analysis techniques
Leak detection: acoustic emission and surveillance; moisture sensitive
tapes; radiotracer/radio-chemical methods
Corrosion detection: chromatography; eddy currents; electrical
resistance; tangential impedance meter; IR spectroscopy; potential
monitoring; thermograph; lasers
Crack detection: ultrasonic methods; optical fibres; lasers; strain
gauges; electrical potential method; eddy currents; acoustic emission;
thermography
Temperature: thermography; thermometry; thermistors; thermocouple
devices; RTDs; optical pyrometers; IR pyrometers; lasers

Scheme of work and assessment plan

Topic
Date

17:45h - 19:15h

03/02

Introduction to Unit

Failure and breakdown

10/02

Failure and
breakdown

Monitoring

24/02

Monitoring

Unit 24 Assignment
Review

03/03

Data analysis

Data analysis

10/03

Condition
monitoring

Vibration

17/03

Leak detection

Corrosion and Crack

detection

24/03

Temperature

Assignment Review

19:30h - 21:00h

31/03

Easter break

07/04

Easter break

Assessm
ent

Out

Moodle

http://moodle.swindon-college.ac.uk
Assignments are to be submitted via Moodle/Turnitin

What is Condition Monitoring?

Condition monitoring (or, colloquially, CM) is the process of
monitoring a parameter of condition in machinery (vibration,
temperature etc.), in order to identify a significant change which is
indicative of a developing fault.
It is a major component of predictive maintenance. The use of
conditional monitoring allows maintenance to be scheduled, or other
actions to be taken to prevent failure and avoid its consequences.
Condition monitoring has a unique benefit in that conditions that would
shorten normal lifespan can be addressed before they develop into a
major failure.
Condition monitoring techniques are normally used on rotating
equipment and other machinery (pumps, electric motors, internal
combustion engines, presses), while periodic inspection using nondestructive testing techniques and fit for service (FFS) evaluation are
used for stationary plant equipment such as steam boilers, piping and
heat exchangers.

Standards and relevant references

BS ISO 13372: "Condition monitoring and diagnostics of machines.
Vocabulary" (2012)
ISO (2011). ISO 17359:2011, Condition monitoring and diagnostics of
machines - General guidelines. The International Organization for
Standardization (ISO)
BS ISO 13374: "Condition monitoring and diagnostics of machines.
Data processing, communication and presentation (parts 1-3)" (2012)
BS ISO 13381-1: "Condition monitoring and diagnostics of machines.
Prognostics - General guidelines" (2004)
Simon R. W. Mills (2010). Vibration Monitoring and Analysis Handbook
- (INST397). The British Institute of Non-Destructive Testing. ISBN 9780-903132-39-8
Charles W. Reeves (1998). The Vibration Monitoring Handbook.
Coxmoor Publishing Co. ISBN 978-1-901892-00-0
Trevor M. Hunt & John S. Evans (2008). Oil Analysis Handbook.

Condition monitoring technology

The following list includes the main condition monitoring techniques
applied in the industrial and transportation sectors:
Vibration condition monitoring and diagnostics
Lubricant analysis
Acoustic emission
Infrared thermography
Ultrasound emission
Motor Condition Monitoring and Motor current signature analysis
(MCSA)
Most CM technologies are being slowly standardized by American
Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) and International Organization
for Standardization (ISO)

Rotating equipment
The most commonly used method for rotating machines is called a
vibration analysis. Measurements can be taken on machine bearing
casings with accelerometers (seismic or piezo-electric transducers) to
measure the casing vibrations, and on the vast majority of critical
machines, with eddy-current transducers that directly observe the
rotating shafts to measure the radial (and axial) displacement of the
shaft. The level of vibration can be compared with historical baseline
values such as former start ups and shutdowns, and in some cases
established standards such as load changes, to assess the severity.
Interpreting the vibration signal obtained is an elaborate procedure that
requires specialized training and experience. It is simplified by the use of
state-of-the-art technologies that provide the vast majority of data
analysis automatically and provide information instead of raw data.
One commonly employed technique is to examine the individual
frequencies present in the signal. These frequencies correspond to
certain mechanical components (for example, the various pieces that
make up a rolling-element bearing) or certain malfunctions (such as
shaft unbalance or misalignment). By examining these frequencies and
their harmonics, the CM specialist can often identify the location and

Rotating equipment
Examples:
High vibration at the frequency corresponding to the speed of
rotation is most often due to residual imbalance and is corrected
by balancing the machine.
A degrading rolling-element bearing will usually exhibit increasing
vibration signals at specific frequencies as it wears. Special
analysis instruments can detect this wear weeks or even months
before failure, giving ample warning to schedule replacement
before a failure which could cause a much longer down-time.
Beside all sensors and data analysis it is important to keep in
mind that more than 80% of all complex mechanical equipment
fail accidentally and without any relation to their life-cycle period.

Rotating equipment
Most vibration analysis instruments today utilize a Fast Fourier
Transform (FFT) which is a special case of the generalized Discrete
Fourier Transform and converts the vibration signal from its time domain
representation to its equivalent frequency domain representation.
However, frequency analysis (sometimes called Spectral Analysis or
Vibration Signature Analysis) is only one aspect of interpreting the
information contained in a vibration signal. Frequency analysis tends to
be most useful on machines that employ rolling element bearings and
whose main failure modes tend to be the degradation of those bearings,
which typically exhibit an increase in characteristic frequencies
associated with the bearing geometries and constructions.
Depending on the type of machine, its typical malfunctions, the bearing
types employed, rotational speeds, and other factors, the CM specialist
may use additional diagnostic tools, such as examination of the time
domain signal, the phase relationship between vibration components
and a timing mark on the machine shaft (often known as a keyphasor),
historical trends of vibration levels, the shape of vibration, and
numerous other aspects of the signal along with other information from
the process such as load, bearing temperatures, flow rates, valve

Rotating equipment
This is particularly true of machines that use fluid bearings rather than
rolling-element bearings. To enable them to look at this data in a more
simplified form vibration analysts or machinery diagnostic engineers
have adopted a number of mathematical plots to show machine
problems and running characteristics, these plots include the bode plot,
the waterfall plot, the polar plot and the orbit time base plot amongst
others.
Handheld data collectors and analyzers are now commonplace on noncritical or balance of plant machines on which permanent on-line
vibration instrumentation cannot be economically justified. The
technician can collect data samples from a number of machines, then
download the data into a computer where the analyst (and sometimes
artificial intelligence) can examine the data for changes indicative of
malfunctions and impending failures.
For larger, more critical machines where safety implications, production
interruptions (so-called "downtime"), replacement parts, and other costs
of failure can be appreciable (determined by the criticality index), a
permanent monitoring system is typically employed rather than relying
on periodic handheld data collection. However, the diagnostic methods

Rotating equipment
Recently also on-line systems have been applied to heavy process
industries such as pulp, paper, mining, petrochemical and power
generation. These can be dedicated systems like Sensodec 6S or
nowadays this functionality has been embedded into DCS.
Performance monitoring is a less well-known condition monitoring
technique. It can be applied to rotating machinery such as pumps and
turbines, as well as stationary items such as boilers and heat
exchangers.
Measurements are required of physical quantities: temperature,
pressure, flow, speed, displacement, according to the plant item.
Absolute accuracy is rarely necessary, but repeatable data is needed.
Calibrated test instruments are usually needed, but some success has
been achieved in plant with DCS (Distributed Control Systems).
Performance analysis is often closely related to energy efficiency, and
therefore has long been applied in steam power generation plants.
Typical applications in power generation could be boiler, steam turbine
and gas turbine. In some cases, it is possible to calculate the optimum
time for overhaul to restore degraded performance.

Sensodec 6S - for predictive maintenance in tissue machines

The Sensodec 6S online condition, runnability and oil lubrication
monitoring system provides you with an integrated, cost-efficient tool
for process and machinery monitoring. It helps your maintenance
people, machine operators, production personnel and process engineers
solve problems in a proactive and preventive way. With its flexible
modular design, Metso Sensodec 6S allows you to start with present
needs and budgets, and extend to cover the future needs of millwide
monitoring later on.
Based on advanced, yet easy-to-use analysis tools, the Metso Sensodec
6S tissue machine condition monitoring system ensures that machine
operators and maintenance people
are alerted well before any mechanical problems in the machinery occur.
It pays to have
early warning in dynamic processes like papermaking, where mechanical
conditions can deteriorate rapidly and where it is especially vital to
recognize the early warning signs of faults.

Sensodec 6S - for predictive maintenance in tissue machines

Avoid unplanned downtime
Early failure detection helps
avoid unplanned machine
downtime, and effectively solves
runnability problems. Rolls,
bearings, gears and other drive
train components produce lowlevel signals at an early stage
when a fault is developing, but is
not yet apparent to operators or
maintenance personnel.
The Sensodec 6S system can
immediately detect even these
early signs of defects with
sensitive high-quality vibration
sensors designed for monitoring
in a paper machinery
environment. Fast measurement
cycles, speed-adaptive alarm
handling and advanced analysis
tools make these signs fully

Case study: Norilsk Nickel

Following the delivery of a Metso Sensodec 6S condition monitoring
system, remote diagnostic support provided by Metso has proved to be
an invaluable aid to predictive maintenance.
Situated in southwest Finland, the Norilsk Nickel Harjavalta operation
produces nickel metals and chemicals from raw materials that come
from as far as Australia and Brazil as well as Finland. Commissioned in
1959 and expanded in 1995 and 2002, today the plant is the seventh
largest nickel refinery in the world with an annual capacity of 65,000
tonnes of nickel. As part of the productivity, machine availability and
maintenance development activities the plant invested in a Metso
Sensodec 6S for continuous condition monitoring of key process
machinery. Today the system monitors 4 ball mills, 3 nickel briquetting
machines and two large process fans.
An important part of the condition monitoring is a monthly report
prepared by Metso specialist, Aarno Kernen, using data from the
Sensodec system he acquires via a secure remote link.

Case study: Norilsk Nickel

Overview shows that a warning (yellow) in two points in one of

the briquetting machines. The 24 month trends show that
vibration level in 1000-3000 Hz range has slowly risen
compared to the red alarm limit line.

Metso specialist Aarno Kernens analysis of this spectrum

showed why the vibration level has increased, there are clear
bearing fault harmonics around 1300-1900 Hz.

Other techniques
Visual inspections
Thermography
Scanning Electron Microscope
Spectrographic oil analysis
Ultrasound Shock Pulse Method
Headphones
Performance analysis
Wear Debris Detection Sensors

Criticality Index
The Criticality Index is often used to determine the degree on condition
monitoring on a given machine taking into account the machines
purpose, redundancy, cost of repair, downtime impacts, health, safety
and environment issues and a number of other key factors. The
criticality index puts all machines into one of three categories:
Critical
machinery

Machines that are vital to the plant or process and without

which the plant or process cannot function. Machines in this
category include the steam or gas turbines in a power plant, crude oil
export pumps on an oil rig or the cracker in an oil refinery. With
critical machinery being at the heart of the process it is seen to
require full on-line condition monitoring to continually record as much
data from the machine as possible regardless of cost and is often
specified by the plant insurance. Measurements such as loads,
pressures, temperatures, casing vibration and displacement, shaft
axial and radial displacement, speed and differential expansion are
taken where possible. These values are often fed back into a
machinery management software package which is capable of
trending the historical data and providing the operators with
information such as performance data and even predict faults and
provide diagnosis of failures before they happen.

Essential
Machinery

Units that are a key part of the process, but if there is a failure,
the process still continues. Redundant units (if available) fall into
this realm. Testing and control of these units is also essential to
maintain alternative plans should Critical Machinery fail.

General

These are the machines that make up the remainder of the plant and

Failure and breakdown

Failure and breakdown

Degradation due to:
Corrosion
Cracking
Fouling
Wear
Ageing
Maloperation
Environmental effects
Operational and maintenance considerations
Statistical analysis of failure rates on plant and equipment

Degradation due to corrosion

Corrosion is the disintegration of an engineered material into its
constituent atoms due to chemical reactions with its surroundings. In the
most common use of the word, this means electrochemical oxidation of
metals in reaction with an oxidant such as oxygen. Formation of an
oxide of iron due to oxidation of the iron atoms in solid solution is a wellknown example of electrochemical corrosion, commonly known as
rusting. This type of damage typically produces oxide(s) and/or salt(s) of
the original metal. Corrosion can also occur in materials other than
metals, such as ceramics or polymers, although in this context, the term
degradation is more common.
In other words, corrosion is the wearing away
of metals due to a chemical reaction.
www.ventiq.com/corrosion

Degradation due to corrosion

Many structural alloys corrode merely from exposure to moisture in the
air, but the process can be strongly affected by exposure to certain
substances. Corrosion can be concentrated locally to form a pit or crack,
or it can extend across a wide area more or less uniformly corroding the
surface. Because corrosion is a diffusion controlled process, it occurs on
exposed surfaces. As a result, methods to reduce the activity of the
exposed surface, such as passivation and chromate-conversion, can
increase a materials corrosion resistance. However, some corrosion
mechanisms are less visible and less predictable.

"Rust and dirt" by Roger McLassus. Licensed under

CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rust_and_dirt.
jpg#mediaviewer/File:Rust_and_dirt.jpg

"Galvanic corrosion of aluminum and steel in

seawater" by Webcorr - Own work. Licensed
under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Galv
anic_corrosion_of_aluminum_and_steel_in_se
awater.jpg#mediaviewer/File:Galvanic_corro
sion_of_aluminum_and_steel_in_seawater.jp

"Crevice corrosion of 316 stainless steel in desalination"

by Webcorr - Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0
via Wikimedia Commons http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Crevice_corrosio
n_of_316_stainless_steel_in_desalination.jpg#mediavie
wer/File:Crevice_corrosion_of_316_stainless_steel_in_de
salination.jpg

Degradation due to corrosion

It will never happen to me

"Opel engine X14NZ-rusty block near the water pump" by Kychot - Own
work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Opel_engine_X14NZrusty_block_near_the_water_pump.jpg#mediaviewer/File:Opel_engine_X
14NZ-rusty_block_near_the_water_pump.jpg

Corroded Transmission Gear from BMW R80 ST Motorcycle

http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=435511

Degradation due to corrosion

Metals (and their alloys) can be

arranged in a galvanic series
representing the potential they
develop in a given electrolyte
against a standard reference
electrode. The relative position
of two metals on such a series
gives a good indication of
which metal is more likely to
corrode more quickly. However,
other factors such as water
aeration and flow rate can
influence the process markedly.

Degradation due to corrosion

Corrosion Prevention
Selection of materials: Use of the standard corrosion references to
select the appropriate material for the environment
Changing the character of the environment: Lowering temperature,
velocity or concentration of the fluids
Using inhibitors: These are substances that when added in low
concentrations to the environment decreases its corrosiveness. The
inhibitor depends on both the alloy and the corrosive environment.
They are used mainly in closed systems: e.g. car radiators, steam
boilers
Using physical barriers: Films and coatings applied to the surface.
There is a large diversity of metallic and non-metallic coatings with a
high degree of surface adhesion
Cathodic Protection: Very effective. It involves supplying from an
external source electrons to the metal to be protected, making it a
cathode

Degradation due to cracking

Degradation due to cracking

Degradation due to cracking

Figure 4-7: Microscopic examination of a cross section of the inner
raceway revealed surface cracks consistent with the spalling observed.
Figure 4.8: Etching the sample revealed a homogeneous macrostructure
of a tempered martensite matrix with undissolved carbides present.
Figure 4.9: Microscopic examination of a quartered ball bearing also
revealed surface cracks.
Figure 4-10: A large crack extending towards the centre of the bearing
was also found.
Figure 4-11: The large surface crack ties along a border of the
heterogeneity.

Degradation due to fouling

Fouling is the accumulation of unwanted material on solid surfaces to
the detriment of function.
The fouling material can consist of either living organisms (biofouling) or
a non-living substance (inorganic or organic). Fouling is usually
distinguished from other surface-growth phenomena in that it occurs on
a surface of a component, system or plant performing a defined and
useful function, and that the fouling process impedes or interferes with
this function.
Other terms used in the literature to describe fouling include: deposit
formation, encrustation, crudding, deposition, scaling, scale formation,
slagging, and sludge formation. The last six terms have a more narrow
meaning than fouling within the scope of the fouling science and
technology, and they also have meanings outside of this scope;
therefore, they should be used with caution.
Fouling phenomena are common and diverse, ranging from fouling of
ship hulls, natural surfaces in the marine environment (marine fouling),
fouling of heat-transfer components through ingredients contained in
the cooling water or gases, and even the development of plaque or

Degradation due to fouling

Degradation due to fouling

Degradation due to wear

Abrasive Wear: Particles generated as a result of abrasive wear are
"work hardened;" they become harder than the parent surface and, if
not removed by proper filtration, will recirculate to cause additional
wear.
Here's how it happens:
Particles enter the clearance space between a component's two moving
surfaces, bury themselves in one of the surfaces, and act like cutting
tools to remove material from the opposing surface. The particle sizes
causing the most damage are those equal to and slightly larger than the
clearance space. Ultimately, abrasive wear will result in dimensional
changes, leakage and lower efficiency. Left uncontrolled, more particles
will be generated which will result in a chain reaction of abrasive wear -a chain reaction that will continue and cause premature system
component failure unless adequate filtration is implemented to break
the chain. To protect components from abrasive wear, particles of
approximately the dynamic clearance size range must be removed.

Degradation due to wear

Erosive Wear: Erosive wear is caused by particles that impinge on a
component surface or edge and remove material from that surface due
to momentum effects. This type of wear is especially noticed in
components with high velocity flows, such as servo and proportional
valves. Particles repeatedly striking the surface may also cause denting
and eventual fatigue on the surface. The damaging effects of erosive
wear can be seen in dimensional changes to equipment, leakage, lower
efficiency, and the generation of additional particles, which leads to
further contamination and wear throughout the system.
Adhesive Wear: Excessive load, low speed, and/or reduction in fluid
viscosity can reduce oil film thickness to a point where metal-to-metal
contact occurs. Surface asperities are "cold welded" together and
particles are sheared off as surfaces move.
Fatigue Wear: Bearing surfaces are subjected to fatigue failures as a
result of repeated stress caused by particles trapped between the two
moving surfaces. At first, the surfaces are dented and then cracking
begins. These cracks spread after repeated stress by the bearing load,
even without additional particulate damage, and eventually the surface
fails, producing a spall. Contamination reduces bearing life significantly

Degradation due to wear

Degradation due to ageing

Degradation due to ageing

Ageing is not about how old your equipment is; it is about its condition,
and how that is changing over time. Ageing is the effect whereby a
component suffers some form of material deterioration and damage
(usually, but not necessarily, associated with time in service) with an
increasing likelihood of failure over the lifetime.
Ageing equipment is equipment for which there is evidence or likelihood
of significant deterioration and damage taking place since new, or for
which there is insufficient information and knowledge available to know
the extent to which this possibility exists.
The significance of deterioration and damage relates to the potential
effect on the equipments functionality, availability, reliability and safety.
Just because an item of equipment is old does not necessarily mean that
it is significantly deteriorating and damaged. All types of equipment can
be susceptible to ageing mechanisms.
Overall, ageing plant is plant which is, or may be, no longer considered
fully fit for purpose due to deterioration or obsolescence in its integrity
or functional performance. Ageing is not directly related to
chronological age. There are many examples of very old plant remaining

Degradation due to ageing

Degradation due to maloperation

Degradation due to environmental effects

"Rust and dirt" by Roger McLassus. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rust_and_dirt.jpg#mediaviewer/File:Rust_and_dirt.jpg

Degradation due to operation and maintenance considerations

Preventative Maintenance
Corrective Maintenance
Predictive Maintenance

Monitoring
Arrangements and measured parameters:
online and offline monitoring
fixed and portable monitoring equipment
continuous and semi-continuous data recording
stress analysis